As The Clock Ticks
by Galaxina-the-Seedrian
Summary: [Once called "Time and Time Again"] Over one hundred years ago, Phineas Flynn and I disappeared from Danville without a trace. Now, here we are, in the future. The Tri-State Area is now a utopia, with everyone living peacefully. Everything is perfect. Everything anyone could ever want, and more...it's a lie. My name is Dr. Heinz Doofenshmirtz, and I want to go home. (AU Post At2D)
1. Prologue

**I know this should be sci-fi, but...look, it's not entirely sci-fi...I think.**

**This is what happens when I read too many MLP fan fics. They inspire me to write this kind of absurd but wonderful work of art! :D**

**So, basically, this is another Phineas and Dr. Doofenshmirtz story. I should have more of those by now, since they're my favorite characters, and I like writing stories about them both. This is more light-hearted than "Like Father, Like Son", as you will see later on.**

**I happen to really like this idea, so, I'm gonna do my best to update this as often as possible. Hopefully, you guys will like this story! And if you do, I will be overjoyed! 8D**

**The cast of Phineas and Ferb belong to Dan Povenmire and Swampy Marsh**

**Please, read, review, and enjoy the show...fic...whatever.**

**P/F/P/F**

**Prologue**

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**.**

**.**

_"Man, this has been the greatest day ever! Imagine how much fun we'll have together now that we know you're a secret agent!"_

_"Yes, yes, the next fifteen minutes should be a real hoot. Well, then of course Agent P will be sent away forever."_

_"Sir, maybe there is a way. What about Dr. Doofenshmirtz's Amnesiainator?"_

_"I never built an Amnesiainator...I think I'd remember something like THAT."_

**.**

**.**

**.**

The dimensions were safe once again. The reformed Alt. Doofenshmirtz was now serving time in prison, while everything else in the second dimension was, at least to some extent, turning back to normal. No one would ever forget the time in the 2nd Dimension...or, that's what they thought. Phineas, Ferb, and the rest were now left with a choice: to either forget ever meeting Agent P, ever going to the 2nd Dimension...or lose their beloved pet forever.

It wasn't a hard choice to make, save for Doofenshmirtz, who pretty much foresaw himself being strapped in a stray-jacket and gagged: they of course chose to lose their memories of the events. However, just before they got to the "cleverly" hidden OWCA headquarters, Carl had another idea.

_"What if everyone swore allegiance never to tell a soul about Agent P, as well as the OWCA?"_

Of course, Major Monogram firmly said no at first. He knew very well that it was far too dangerous for any of them to know Agent P's secret double life. But after some persuasion, as well as a "We can take care of ourselves, we defeated an army of robots for heaven's sake" rant and forcing Doofenshmirtz to swear that he'd never hurt Perry's owners or the people they were closest to, Monogram finally had no choice but to agree. Everyone thanked Carl for coming up with the idea, while Doofenshmirtz told Perry, who forced him to make the promise in the first place, that he would never look at the platypus the same way again as he fearfully scooted away from the angry looking semi-aquatic mammal. Safe to say, everyone kept their memories about Agent P, while keeping their mouths shut about it to their other family and friends.

Now all that needed to be solved was how to get over the habit of saying "Hey, where's Perry?"

**.**

**.**

**.**

_5 months later..._

At the outskirts of Danville was a bush, and there hid a triangular headed boy. The leaves provided bare camouflage for the boy, who as still as a rock, trying hard to hold his breath. Sweat formed and fell from his forehead. If he was found, a number of terrible things could happen to him. He scanned the perimeter, as if to search for an enemy looking specifically for him.

_"Yes," _Phineas thought to himself, grinning, _"No one will ever find me here!"_

A pair of hands grabbed his shoulders. "GOTCHA," a voice shouted from above.

The red-headed boy gasped as he jumped out of the bushes in pure shock. He panted and placed a hand on his chest, which was an action that the other seemed to take no notice in as she giggled. "Sorry," Isabella giggled, "Didn't mean to spook you that bad."

"That's...that's fine Isabella," Phineas rasped, "How did...how did you find me?"

"Your nose was sticking out," Isabella stated, poking the said body part playfully.

Phineas chuckled weakly. "Oh...that..." he rubbed his lobe, "I don't see...the others...who won?"

Since school had started up again, Phineas and Ferb found nearly no time to build things everyday. However, no matter what they did, they would try to "carpe diam" anyway. Of course, today, the two brothers and their friends decided to play a game of hide-and-seek. A normal, military-based game, of hide-and-seek. Of course, it was kind of an "all men for themselves" kind of thing. Literally all men, since it was Isabella's turn to be "it".

"No one yet," Isabella said, "I found Buford and Baljeet already. They're waiting back at the park. I think I saw Irving hiding near Slushy Burger, and I heard that Ferb was somewhere around here."

"I can...I can help...look."

Isabella frowned. "I don't know, Phineas," she said, looking worried, "You don't look so good."

Phineas wheezed. "You think so," he asked, as if obliviously to his own coughs.

"Maybe you should take another break," Isabella insisted.

Phineas was going to turn down the suggestion (that seemed more like a demand), but let out another cough. His throat hurt badly from all the coughing. "Yeah...that seems like...a good idea," Phineas admitted as he slowly turned, "I'm gonna...go home and...see what Candace is...up to...maybe...Perry's home, now..."

Phineas heavily tread to the Flynn/Fletcher household. Isabella wanted to go with her not-so-secret love to see if he was alright, but thought it would be rude to leave everyone else in their hiding spots. "He's been having a lot of breaks lately," Isabella murmured to herself as she went.

**.**

**.**

**.**

**_~Doofenshmirtz Evil Incorporated~_**

Phineas stumbled a bit as he passed Doofenshmirtz Evil Inc. He felt like his heart had been replaced with heavy rocks. No, boulders. It felt like boulders to him. He looked to the streets heading for his home, and then back to DEI.

After a moment of thinking, Phineas dragged himself toward the apartment building, his head swimming. He went on his toes, and pressed on one of the buttons on the intercom. "Hey, Dr. D," Phineas greeted a bit loudly, "You there?"

Phineas released the button. Moments later, he heard the evil scientist's voice. "Ah, Phineas Flynn,"Doofenshmirtz's voice said, almost as if he were talking to Perry only without the malice, "How are you doing?"

"I'm...doing fine," Phineas said, a little tiredly, "Hey, do you...think I can...come in?"

"Sure thing," Doofenshmirtz said, "Perry the Platypus already left. I could use some help cleaning up."

Phineas smiled. "Sure...thing," he nodded.

Doofenshmirtz let him inside the building, and led him to his penthouse. The room was a complete mess from the battle Doofenshmirtz and Perry had. The red head looked up at the tall brown-headed man, curiously. "What exactly were you up to this time," Phineas asked.

Doofenshmirtz looked down to Phineas, smirking as he crossed his arms. "I tried to spray paint Town Hall with a Spray-Paintinator," Doofenshmirtz said, "It was Vanessa's idea."

Phineas chuckled. "Vanessa came up with that," he asked.

"Yep," Doofenshmirtz sniffed, "I am so proud of her."

Phineas rolled his eyes with a smile. "Well, let's get started," he said, noticing that he was feeling better.

Thank goodness! For a second he thought that something was wrong with him!

An hour passed...

Phineas grabbed his chest, just as he was about to throw away the last piece of metal. Oh, crud...

"Thanks again for the help, kid," Doofenshmirtz grinned as he went over to Phineas, who looked back at him weakly, "You have no idea how much of a pain cleaning all of this up all by myself is. Sheesh!"

"I...can imagine," Phineas panted.

"I mean, you think Perry the Platypus could be a bit more aware, and...Phineas, are you alright?"

The boy nodded. "Yeah, I...I'm okay...I'm fine."

To Phineas, it sounded like an assurance. To Doofenshmirtz, it sounded like a plea. As if Phineas was begging to be alright, when part of him knew something was off. Doofenshmirtz frowned. "You don't sound fine," he said, feeling sternness that he only showed to his daughter.

Phineas failed to notice, and tried to smile a positive smile. "It's fine...I just...need to sit...down for a...couple...of..."

Phineas wobbled before suddenly falling to the ground, too sudden for Doofenshmirtz to react immediately. The evil scientist quickly went to his knees and began to shake the boy. "Phineas? Phineas!"

The boy was unconscious.

"NORM," Doofenshmirtz's voice barked to the direction of the kitchen where the said piece of machine was baking cupcakes, "Call 9-1-1! NOW!"

Norm, hearing the sound of panic in his "father's" voice, immediately stopped what he was doing and did as he was told. He went to a phone, dialed the said number, and-.

"They are on hold," Norm said in an overly happy tone (at least for the situation at hand).

"On hold?!" Doofenshmirtz groaned loudly, "Oh, for the love of-!"

Doofenshmirtz lifted the young boy up to his arms and headed for the car. "Scratch that, Norm," Doofenshmirtz yelled, "Call Candace and tell her I'm taking Phineas to the hospital!"

The robot obeyed as the scientist ran out the door, down the halls, and out of the apartment to his car. He could feel Phineas leaning on his chest, breathing soft, raspy breaths.

**.**

**.**

**.**

A car sped forward, the driver ignoring everyone else around him who were all yelling at him for speeding. In the back seat, the young ten-year-old stirred.

"Mm...Dr. D...?"

Doofenshmirtz stopped at the stop-light before turning to Phineas, who lying in the back. "Thank goodness, you're alright," Doofenshmirtz let out a sigh of relief.

"What happened," Phineas asked, "We were talking, and...and..."

"You passed out," Doofenshmirtz explained as he turned back to the road, continuing to drive as the light turned green, "Right now, we're heading to the hospital. They'll be able to find out what's wrong, alright?"

Phineas nodded, faintly smiling. Doofenshmirtz gave a reassuring smile as he gave glances to the boy every so often while trying to keep his eyes on the road.

"You're going to be okay Phineas. You're going to be okay..."

**.**

**.**

**.**

The doors of the Danville Good Samaritan Hospital opened. Doofenshmirtz, carrying Phineas on his back, sat the boy on a chair, who dizzily looked around.

A friendly nurse went over to them, wearing a kind smile. "Good afternoon," she greeted, "How may we help you?"

Doofenshmirtz replied, "Phineas fell unconscious a few minutes ago, and I got worried. I took him here as fast as I could. He's awake now, as you can see, but, still..."

Before the grown man could go off on a ramble, the nurse kneeled down to Phineas. "Phineas, how are you feeling," the nurse asked, "What doesn't feel good to you?"

"Well, I feel really dizzy," Phineas said, "And...my chest hurts...really bad."

The nurse frowned. "Oh dear," she said as she stood back up, still looking at the boy, "We better get you to one of the examination rooms right away."

The woman picked up the boy, and carried him away. "Don't worry, we'll see what's wrong, alright Phineas?"

"Alright..." Phineas nodded weakly.

The two left, leaving Doofenshmirtz in the waiting room. He sat there for about ten minutes before the doors slammed open, revealing two teenagers followed by a green-headed boy holding a platypus and a girl with raven black hair an a pink bow. "Where is he," Candace boomed, "Where's my brother?!"

"Candace," Stacey's voice hissed, "We're in a hospital! Indoor voice, please?"

Everyone took a seat with Doofenshmirtz, who seemed to be staring off into space until he noticed the action. "Oh, hey," he said, almost nervously.

The platypus chattered in Ferb's arms. "Oh, hey Perry the Platypus," Doofenshmirtz greeted.

"Thank you for helping Phineas," Ferb said.

Doofenshmirtz didn't say a thing to that, and simply nodded. Ferb patted the man on the back. "I was at Stacey's when Norm called," Candace explained, "And rushed her as soon as possible! We met up with Ferb and the other kids and told them what happened. We meant to bring Ferb only, but Isabella insisted she come along."

A look of guilt was planted on the Spanish-Jew's face. "Oh, it's all my fault," she sobbed, "I should have followed him!"

Perry crawled over to Isabella's lap and nuzzled her. She stroked him, starting to calm down a bit.

"What's wrong with him," Candace demanded.

"I don't know," Doofenshmirtz said, "He just passed out. He woke up, eventually, during the drive here. And when we got to the hospital, he said he was feeling dizzy and had chest-pains."

Candace paled. "No, it-it can't be," she said to herself, "He's too young for that..."

Isabella peered over at the ginger-headed teen. "Candace?"

"It's nothing," Candace lied, "Really, it's probably nothing too serious. He may have done things, like, build a roller coaster, or traveling to the depths of space, but even I know he's too young."

_"Too young for what?" _Ferb, Doofenshmirtz, and Perry wondered.

A few moments passed before Candace let out a sigh. "Well, ain't this just a _wonderful _time for our parents to be on vacation," she said sarcastically to Ferb, who did eye-roll in response.

"Maybe you should call them," Stacey suggested.

"I'll do that as soon as we know Phineas's condition," Candace said, just as the nurse from before came around the corner. "For Phineas," she asked, and everyone stood, "Follow me. He's in one of our rooms."

"Thank you," Candace nodded as she and everyone else followed the nurse through the infirmary.

**.**

**.**

**.**

"Phineas!"

Phineas looked to see Candace, Ferb, and Isabella-who was currently holding Perry-run to his side, his siblings on the right, and his best friend on the left. Doofenshmirtz and Stacey entered soon after as Phineas greeted them all. "How are you feeling," Isabella asked.

"Tired," Phineas said, looking to the pink-wearing girl.

A man in a white coat similar to Doofenshmirtz's entered the room. "Hello, everyone," he greeted, "I'm Dr. Anderson. How are you feeling, Phineas?"

Phineas looked over. "Still tired," he answered after a minute, earning a few half-hearted chuckles from his family and friends.

Doofenshmirtz looked over at the doctor. "What's wrong with him," he asked.

The doctor removed his glasses. "Phineas has developed some severe heart murmurs," Dr. Anderson explained, "It's rare to hear them in a child his age. Has young Phineas had any recent fevers?"

"Not that I can recall," Candace said, "The most recent sickness I remember Phineas having was a bad cold, and that was in the middle of Summer Break."

"Any throat infections?"

"I don't think so," Candace said, turning to her brothers. Ferb shook his head, while Phineas did the same in a drowsy manner.

Dr. Anderson picked up a clipboard on a table next to Phineas's bed and looked it over. "Any family issues of heart issues?"

All eyes were on an obviously worried to death Candace Flynn. "Do you think that's what it is," she asked, "Well, yes, there was some heart problems for my biological father's side. You see, the cause of his death was a heart-attack that happened when Phineas and I were younger, but he had some...other constant heart problems as well. The same goes with other family members from my father's family tree, though most of them are still alive. I'm lucky not to have had anything that serious...but, Phineas is young. He'll be fine, right?"

"We're still waiting for the results of the x-rays," Dr. Anderson explained, "At any case, he'll need immediate operation."

"Dr. Anderson," another nurse entered the room, "I have the patient's x-rays ready in the hallway."

"Thank you, Bethany," Dr. Anderson nodded before turning to Doofenshmirtz, "And your his...?"

Doofenshmirtz blinked a moment before realizing the question at hand.

"Wha-no, no, no, I'm not his caretaker," Doofenshmirtz quickly explained, "I'm just a friend of theirs."

"I see," the doctor turned to Candace, "So, where are your parents then, Miss...?"

"Candace," the teen replied, "And, my mom and dad are on vacation."

"Well, then," Dr. Anderson said, "Would you like to discuss them outside?"

Candace nodded. "Yes. Yes I would."

"We'll keep Phineas company," Isabella stated.

And with that, Candace followed the doctor and nurse out of the room. A few more minutes passed, as everyone sat and waited. Phineas had just nodded off when the sound of angry screams were heard in the hallway. Doofenshmirtz smiled. "You know what," Doofenshmirtz said in a way that failed to mask his worry despite his sudden "optimism", "I'm gonna go see what's wrong."

Stacey decided it'd be a good idea if she went as well. Doofenshmirtz and Stacey both left the room. "Candace," Stacey began, "What are you-?"

Candace was busy being restrained by two nurses, whose strength was barely enough to hold the angry sister back from strangling Dr. Anderson. "YOU LIAR! You said you could help him, you QUACK!"

Doofenshmirtz and Stacey both moved to help the two nurses hold Candace back from Dr. Anderson. "Candace," Stacey yelled, "Please, STOP!"

"NO," Candace yelled, "This phony's telling lies about Phineas!"

Doofenshmirtz decided to ignore Candace while Stacey tried her best to calm her down. "What's wrong," he asked Dr. Anderson, who straightened his coat.

"I'm sorry," Dr. Anderson began, sounding guilty, "But, Phineas has developed a severely malformed heart valve. There's nothing we can do."

Doofenshmirtz's heart dropped.

"LIAR," Candace screamed, her tears streaming down her face.

Stacey's own eyes began to water. "How long does he have," she asked.

"Two months, three at most," Dr. Anderson answered, "I'm sorry..."

"L...Liar...Liar," Candace choked through he sobs as she to the floor, dragging Stacey down with her.

"Candace...I'm sorry," was all Stacey could say as Candace sobbed into her shoulder.

Doofenshmirtz was staring off into space once more before immediately leaving the hospital without a single goodbye.

**.**

**.**

**.**

_One weeks later..._

The closed curtains muted the sunlight shining into the infirmary room. Vivian slowly opened the door, letting in her daughter, two of her friends-one in particular was wearing glasses-and a certain little Chihuahua. Phineas looked up at them, smiling. "Hey guys."

"Hello, Phineas," Vivian greeted.

Gretchen and Adyson chuckled. "I see the other Fireside Girls already came by," Adyson said, pointing out the part of the room that ceased to exist, being replaced by some get well balloons, a few streamers, and enough goody baskets to satisfy the entire hospital.

"Irving came over too," Phineas chuckled nervously, "He was a bit...hysterical."

Irving had taken to this the worst. As obsessive and creepy as he was, to see one of his two idols lying on a hospital bed, and knowing that he was dying broke him. However, there were still others who were more worried for Phineas's well-being than Irving. Isabella, Gretchen, and Vivian took their seats next to a sleeping Candace and Ferb, while Perry and Pinky both walked to the other side of the hospital bed to converse.

"How do you feel, Phineas," Vivian asked.

Phineas sighed. "Scared," he said.

"It's only natural to be scared," Gretchen stated.

"But you have to stay strong, for your friends and family," Adyson said with a bit of oomph to it...that depleted with a sigh, "Still a bit depressing, though."

"It's not fair," Isabella said, "You had so much ahead of you..."

"That's what Candace said," Phineas said, trying to light up the mood.

He failed.

"It's not right," Isabella said, close to tears, "It's just not right."

Vivian pulled her daughter into a one-armed hug. "Some things happen that aren't right, my chika," she said.

"Unless Phineas magically gets better and...uh..." Adyson trailed off and sniffled, "Sorry..."

Candace and Ferb both blinked awake, Ferb being the first to greet everyone with a wave-he hadn't said a word since learning that his brother was going to die in a few months-while Candace halfheartedly straightened her now frizzy hair. "Sorry," Candace apologized, "I didn't notice any of you come in."

On the other side of the bed, Isabella's beloved Chihuahua tilted his head at Perry. "So, mi amigo, when was the last time Doofenshmirtz came to visit," Pinky asked in his native tongue._  
_

"Two weeks ago when he got here," Perry chattered almost bitterly.

"AYE," Pinky growled, "Why hasn't he been coming by?! Doesn't he care?!"

"He probably finds it awkward showing those kinds of emotions to his nemesis' family," Perry said, motioning to himself.

"Yeah, man, but it ain't right," Pinky shook his head, "Doofenshmirtz still cares about you guys, right? What could he possibly be doing that's more important than helping Phineas get through this?"

**.**

**.**

**.**

There were times where Vanessa's father was just plain annoying or idiotic. There were times where he managed to let her down, or make her look like a fool. But he always managed to make up for it in the end...now was not one of those times. And this time, the bad luck wasn't directed to her, but to her friend's brother who was dying as he worked in the part of the penthouse where he and Perry would usually do their battles.

Vanessa opened the door. "Dad," she said, "I know you're here...dad?"

Vanessa was met with the stench of fresh coffee. Books were stacked by a desk where her father sat, his back facing her. All around the floor was random sprawls of paper that looked like blueprints that had been discarded, crumpled, or torn. The punk-rock teen was suddenly feeling a little uneasy about coming to her father's home.

"Uh, dad, what are you-?"

"Brainstorming! Studying! Gotta study! Have to build it fast! No time to waste!"

Vanessa blinked. "Uh..."

Doofenshmirtz giggled.

"Time! Get it?!"

The man turned to his daughter, revealing nearly blood-shot eyes that made the girl gasp. "Dad, when was the last time you slept," Vanessa asked, slowly walking forward.

Doofenshmirtz looked at Vanessa as if she were asking him to jump off a cliff. "Sleep? Can't sleep! Not yet," Doofenshmirtz's eyes twitched several times before taking another sip of cup of coffee that was on his desk.

"Yeah," Vanessa began, "I'm just...gonna go and see how Phineas is doing, okay?"

"Yes! Phineas!"

Doofenshmirtz paused. Then jerked.

"Gimmelshtump!"

"Gimmelshtump," Vanessa asked.

"Yes! Gimmelshtump," Doofenshmirtz answered so rapidly that Vanessa could barely hear his rabble, "The answer lies there! Hee-hee! Yes! NORM!"

The said robot entered, holding a pot of freshly brewed coffee. "More coffee, dad," Norm asked.

"I AM NOT YOUR FATHER-Hee hee hee," Doofenshmirtz's short rage towards the giant robot-man lasted for only about three seconds before he let out more insane laughter that made even Norm take a few steps back, "I need you to watch the penthouse! I'm going back to Gimmelshtump to get that library! If those two kids could do it, then I can do it too! But bigger!

"But I need more books! More, more, books!"

"Books? Library?" Vanessa was even more confused, "But, dad, there's a library he-."

"Need to hurry! Gotta be fast," Doofenshmirtz said more to himself than anyone else as he ran out of his chair and down the hall passed his daughter and giant robot man, "Plane to Gimmelshtump leaves in an hour! Gotta pack!"

Vanessa and Norm gave each other glances, Vanessa's obviously being weirded out, while Norm's remained ambiguous. Five minutes later, Doofenshmirtz came out of his room, dragging along his suit-case in one hand, and three books in the other. He kissed his daughter on the forehead, before heading out the door. "Be good," he called out to his daughter before the door slammed.

Vanessa could only stare.

**.**

**.**

**.**

_Two months later..._

Phineas had been allowed out of the hospital for two weeks now. His parents had demanded that they keep trying to find ways to save him, but, no one had the cure. And soon, everyone began to sadly except his fate.

Ferb said absolutely nothing the entire time. What could he say? He's practically on his death bed, Ferb thought as he looked over to his brother who was fast asleep. Nothing was okay. Nothing would ever be okay.

Isabella hated herself. Not only was she the only person who noticed Phineas acting strangely yet did nothing to see what was wrong, she couldn't even tell him how she felt even now! Isabella felt like Phineas would never forgive her for something that wasn't even her fault. Maybe if she tried to see if he was okay, then they would have saved him. But, it was too late now.

Perry was completely depressed. Too depressed to fight Doofenshmirtz, who hadn't been doing anything that involved the Tri-State Area. Major Monogram decided that for the time being that another agent would check up on Doofenshmirtz until Perry managed to get back to his feet again. The cruel, cruel irony: he was finally allowed to let them know who he was, and now...

Candace had never felt so paranoid in all her life. She knew very well that, as she closed her eyes to go to sleep, she knew that when she opened them again, Phineas's might not. Her dreams involved her on a boat during a storm. Phineas was there, falling overboard, and she could only watch as her brother was being taken farther, and farther away from-

"Hello Candace."

The teenager nearly screamed at the giant robot's presence. "Norm," Candace hissed, "What are you doing here?! It's three in the morning!"

Norm turned to the alarm clock on the table beside Candace's bed. "My apologies," Norm said, "But Dr. D wants you to come over. He says it's really important, and to bring Phineas."

Candace stared at Norm with an unimpressed expression on her face. "Norm, no offense, but Doofenshmirtz hasn't really been himself lately," Candace looked to the side in thought, "Then again, maybe he's been himself too much."

"But Doofenshmirtz thinks he knows how to save Phineas."

Candace's eyes widened. "...What?"

"He found a way to save Phineas," Norm repeated.

Candace stared at the giant robot, who stared back. She sighed. "Look, I don't know if it's such a good idea to move Phineas in his condition," Candace said, rubbing her temples, "How did you even get in here?"

"Perry the Platypus let me in."

Candace looked to the entrance of her room, seeing a platypus standing on his hind legs and wearing a fedora. Perry walked over to Candace and took out a pen and notepad, writing something into it as he did. He gave the notepad to Candace once he was done scribbling down his words. Candace eyed the message and then the platypus.

"You're telling me you believe him," Candace asked.

Perry sighed with a shrug. He didn't know if he should trust Doofenshmirtz or not, since, as he heard from Vanessa, the man was pretty much going crazy. But this was a chance to save Phineas. Whether it was right or wrong, it was still a chance! And he'd take any chance if it meant saving his owner.

Candace wasn't as sure as the platypus was. What if whatever Doofenshmirtz planned made things worse? His plans tended to backfire on him a lot. What made this time different? But as Candace stared at Perry's eyes, she realized that there was finally an alternative, and gave in.

"Fine," Candace said in defeat, "I suppose it can't make him feel worse...in the end."

The ginger headed teen didn't bother waking up her parents. They wouldn't dare let Phineas leave the house, no matter how much he wanted to be outside. Candace tip-toed over to the boys' room, having already ordered Perry and Norm to leave the house and wait outside, going over to Phineas's bed respectively. She gently shook Phineas, who groaned as he opened his eyes.

"Huh? What," Phineas yawned as he turned to his sister, "Candace? What is it?"

Candace hushed him. "We were just about to go see Dr. Doofenshmirtz," she chimed, "Won't that be fun?"

The boy finally nodded, tiredly. "I'd like to see Dr. D, one more time," Phineas said.

The answer made Candace cringe. Phineas Flynn, her brother, the boy who could do anything, was excepting his fate. She guessed that even the most optimistic of people knew that death was inevitable in the end. "Alright then," Candace gave a nervous smile, "Let's go."

Candace picked up her brother and headed out the room, unaware that Ferb was awake the whole time. _"What is she doing?"_

"Is mom and dad awake," Phineas asked.

"No," Candace answered as they headed down the stairs, "They're-."

"Candace, what are you doing?"

Candace froze. Slowly turning, she saw her mother, Linda, and her step-father, Lawrence, staring down at her. No sooner later, Ferb got out of room to see what Candace was going to do. A pregnant silence ruled the moment. The parents saw Phineas in her arms, but both said nothing, hoping for a good explanation.

"D-a friend of mine thinks he's found a way to save Phineas," Candace said, reminding herself that her parents didn't know of Doofenshmirtz's existence, "I trust him. So, I'm taking Phineas on a little trip."

Phineas stared up at Candace hopefully. So that's why Doofenshmirtz had been gone for so long?

"Candace," Linda started, "I don't think that's such a good-"

"I'm not gonna sit while there might be a way to save my brother's life," Candace yelled earning a flinch from the others, "I am taking him to Doofenshmirtz and that is final!"

Candace thanked heaven above that her parents didn't seem to notice her saying "Doofenshmirtz" as she headed out the door with Phineas in her arms. The rest of the family looked at each other.

**.**

**.**

**.**

Outside, Phineas and Candace found Norm, Perry, and...

"Isabella," Candace asked.

"Norm got the wrong address," Isabella, still in her pajamas, explained, "Is it true? Is there a way to save Phineas?"

"I...I don't know, Isabella," Candace sighed, "But, whatever Doofenshmirtz is planning, then it's worth a shot."

With that being said, Norm transformed into a car, and happily said as everyone began boarding him, "Please, strap yourselves in, quickly. Dr. D has been running ragged while he's been working on that project of his."

"Oh boy, here we go," Isabella face-palmed while Perry eye-rolled.

"Norm get me some more coffee, Norm get me this book, Norm help me carrying in half of the library's vaults," Norm went on, "And now, he's going to get extremely mad at me if I don't get you outside of town right now. So, if we can please get there so I can be ordered around some more...?"

"Candace!"

Everyone turned to the voice, all shocked to see that Ferb had finally spoken after all these months. Perry, sitting on the passenger's seat, went back to his "mindless-pet" mode at the sight of Linda and Lawrence, who both stood by the front door. Ferb ran over to the car, staring up. "I want to go too," he said.

Candace looked over to her parents, hopefully. After a few minutes, they both nodded. Ferb entered Norm and sat on the other side of Candace. The robot-man-car then drove off with no other question.

"...Is it me, or did that car have a head," was all Lawrence could say.

**.**

**.**

**.**

After Norm stopped in the middle of the outskirts of town and a several minute walk, the robot, platypus, and others found themselves staring at a large portal-like machine powered by large pillars. Everyone stared, jaws dropping to the floor, save for Norm who had already seen the machine and had no jaw to begin with.

Four pillars, each over forty feet tall, stood in separate "corners" and ways from the portal. The pillars glowed faintly with green-looking energy. On the ground were thousands of wires, plugged into the machine and the power source. An "evil" scientist stood by one of the pillars, pressing a few buttons on the side of it, while another teenager stood from a distance. When he noticed the others there, he briskly went over to them, glaring at Norm.

"Norm! What took you so long," Doofenshmirtz scolded, eliciting an eye-roll from his daughter as she walked over to the others.

"Doofenshmirtz," Isabella said, still staring at the large machine awestruck, "What...what is that?"

"I was going to ask the same thing," Vanessa said, crossing her arms as she pondered to herself whether to add 'for the tenth time' or not.

"This," Dr. Doofenshmirtz motioned, "Is the Temporalinator! A trans-temporal transportational apparatus, designed to jump along the fourth dimension, while remaining stationary relative to the planetary gravitational field." Dr. Doofenshmirtz clapped his hands together.

Everyone stared at him blankly. Even Perry looked flummoxed. "It's a what-now," Candace asked.

"It's a time-machine," Ferb translated.

"Ooooh," everyone else said while Perry chattered.

"Wait a minute," Candace said, "Whoa, whoa, whoa, why didn't you just use the time-machine from the museum?"

"They moved the exhibit to another museum," Doofenshmirtz explained with a shrug, "They wouldn't tell me anything when I asked about it. So, I thought, why not build my own time-machine? If two kids can _fix_ one, I can _build_ one in a week, tops," the man paused with a chuckle, "Of course, it proved a lot harder than expected."

"So, let me get this straight," Candace said, "You're going to go back in time an prevent Phineas from getting sick?"

"No offense, Dr. D," Isabella said, "But I don't think we could exactly heal him then, either."

"Well, yeah," Dr. Doofenshmirtz said, "It wouldn't be possible, anyway, since I didn't arrive then. The past can't be altered, which means everything that has happened will happen. That's why I knew I had to finish this quickly."

"Then, what exactly do you have in mind, Dad," Vanessa asked.

"Simple," Doofenshmirtz said, "Phineas and I are going to the future. I'm sure the medicine a few centuries from now will be able to heal him. After he's back to normal, then we come back!"

Doofenshmirtz beamed at everyone.

"Are you sure that's a good idea," Candace asked.

"I'm almost positive that this'll work," Doofenshmirtz's 'comfort' seemed dead to everyone, "Okay, I admit, it's a little dangerous-"

"A little," Vanessa asked, eyeing the machine.

"-But it's the only thing I can think of that will save Phineas."

Ferb looked up at the apparatus and back to his brother. "I'd feel more comfortable if I could go with," he admitted.

"Unfortunately, it only has room for two," Dr. Doofenshmirtz sighed.

"THIS has only room for TWO," Isabella asked, scanning over the machine a hundredth time.

Candace looked down to Phineas, who was barely awake at the moment. "Well...if it can save Phineas, then I can't say no," she said as she handed Phineas over to Doofenshmirtz, who gently took the boy.

"Vanessa," Doofenshmirtz turned to his daughter.

Vanessa nodded and went to the pillar. "I remember the buttons," she said, "Just tell me when."

Doofenshmirtz nodded and began walking over to the portal. "Phineas," he said, earning the boy's attention, "You and I are going to a time where they can heal you, okay?"

Phineas nodded, earning another smile from Doofenshmirtz.

"You might want to take a few steps back," Norm said to the others, who obeyed his request.

Doofenshmirtz nodded to Vanessa, who pressed a few buttons before running over to the others at the sound of the machine running. The energy from the machine whizzed, and began to form a literal doorway through time.

"Be careful," Candace called, raising out a hand.

"And stay safe," Isabella added.

"Good luck, dad," Vanessa said.

"Bye Phineas," Isabella called.

"When you get back, I will throw you a welcome back party, dad," Norm said, happy not to hear his father deny that the robot was his son.

Perry let out a chatter with ambiguous meaning.

Finally, Ferb gave a thumbs up.

Doofenshmirtz took a deep breath as he walked into the swirl of green light, taking Phineas with him. "Please work," Doofenshmirtz whispered to himself as he finally went through, a blast of light erupting from the action.

And right after, the portal closed into nothingness.

"For once, I hope my dad know's what he's doing," Vanessa said.

"I better get started on that party," Norm stomped off, "Who knows when they'll be back!"

Somehow, that worried everyone else all the more.

**(End of Prologue)**

**A/N:**

**I hope you all enjoyed! 8D**

**I worked really, really, REALLY hard on this! So please, no flames unless it involves constructive criticism. I like constructive criticism. :3**

**Please, read and review! It'll make me happy! :D**


	2. Welcome, Visitor!

**PLEASE READ AUTHOR'S NOTE!**

**Hi everyone! :D**

**It has come to my attention that someone (Secret Agent G) has already used the name "Time and Time Again" for a story, a story that I have been wanting to read, but haven't gotten the time to do so. So, you know what that means: I'm gonna change the title of my story to something else! YAY! 8D**

**...Not right now, of course, since I have no idea what I'm gonna change it to...**

**...That's...that's about it. :3**

**I own NOTHING but my OCs which I will list out later. I also own this story, though I was VERY inspired by PnF, MLP, Star Trek (sorry, but I prefer it over Star Wars any day ^_^), and a pinch of a certain video game I don't even own, nor have I ever played.**

**Dan Povenmire and Swampy Marsh own "Phineas and Ferb"**

**Note: ENJOY!**

**P/F/P/F**

**Chapter 1: Welcome, Visitors!**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**_(Hello! Welcome to New Danville!)_**

**_(Happiest place of earth!)_**

**_(It's the perfect place to live!)_**

The almost robotic voice rung in the air in a welcoming tone. A woman roughly at the age of 29 ran down the streets of her rather large home-town, a wave of panic filling her every being.

She was never later.

Ever.

For anything.

Well, maybe not never. There was this one time...and then that other time...and then those twelve other times too...but other than that, she was NEVER FREAKING LATE!

Except for now. NOW she was late. Now she was EXTREMELY late.

"MONTY'S GONNA KILL ME," she shrieked, "He's gonna have my head on a plaque, on a wall by the time I get there! Oh-ho-ho, why is this happening to me?!"

Monty.

As in her boss.

As in the leader of the official Tri-State Undercover Union: The T-S.U.U., if you will. It had been around for many years, since 2021.

Now, it was 2257, exactly two thousand, two hundred, forty-two years after.

But we're getting off topic. Monty. Monty Monogram V. He was head of the T-S.U.U. for quite some time now. Having a similar appearance to his ancestor, Francis Monogram, although looking much younger since he WAS in his early thirties. It used to be called the OWCA, but things had changed over the course of history.

Meet Alice.

The one who's late.

_Very late._

Alice is one of Monty's scientists, who are currently working on a particular project that requires her presence. She had another job there as well, but that was classified. She was very well-rounded in mechanical skills, every since she was a child. In fact, her ancestors built things just like her. It was practically in her blood stream, she told herself proudly.

But now wasn't time to be prideful for her talents. She was late. And she could not tolerate being tardy AGAIN for the sixth time this week!

And it hasn't even been six days yet!

"I can't make it," Alice panted, "Ugh! Why did I forget my jet pack at home? WHO FORGETS THEIR JET PACK?! It's a STINKING! JET PACK!"

The woman finally made it to her work place: The T-S.U.U. building, that everyone passed off as a business place rather than a secret agency. It was also the tallest building in the entire city; very hard to miss. Alice went through the slide doors in high speed, pushing dozens of people out of her way as she went. Completely ignoring people's glares, Alice continued to run until she reached the elevator, and pressed the highest number.

The door shut.

She panted heavily.

"I've...I've gotta," Alice wheezed, "Get a new...alarm clock...cough..."

The T-S.U.U. building consisted of seventy floors, each with it's own work facility that was aligned with the T-S.U.U. There were several, smaller buildings owned by T-S.U.U., and so on since the OWCA expanded. The secret agency was no longer working with only animals. They were working with humans too. Almost every human had an animal partner, and vice versa. Even Alice had a partner to torture the heck out of her as she put it.

After half way up to the top floor, the doors opened again. Speak of the devil himself, in trotted a small goat wearing an old looking fedora on his head, slurping on his coffee. He gave a smirk at Alice, who glared hatefully. "Don't say it," she growled, "Don't you DARE say it!"

The goat stared up up the woman with a sly grin. "Don't," the woman said in a warning tone, "You," the goat opened his mouth, "DARE!"

The goat shut his mouth, a satisfied look on his face. Alice let out a deep sigh. "Thank you..."

Dead silence.

The elevator doors opened to Monty's Office. "I'm glad we had this chat," Alice said casually as she left the elevator.

The goat followed his partner.

"...Late again?"

"SHUT IT!"

"Ahem."

Both heads turned to their boss, Monty Monogram V, whose gaze looked rather dark. It pierced through Alice's very soul as she felt herself wanting to crumble to the floor in order to hide from the gaze, while the goat beside her calmly sipped his drink. "You're late again, Alice," Monty noted, "What's the reason this time, hm?"

"He-he, oh you know," Alice rubbed the lobe of her neck, "The usual."

"You slept in again, didn't you?"

Alice looked like she had been insulted for a few seconds before letting out a sigh. "Yes..."

Monty face-palmed lightly whilst the goat snickered. In an act of vengeance, Alice kicked the cup into the goat's face. The goat reeled in pain for a couple of seconds. "Idiot," he hissed as he wiped his face with his hoof, "Stupid, short-tempered, floozy!"

Alice shot a death-stare. "Floozy my big fat a-!"

"That's enough, both of you."

Alice and her partner glared at each other for ten seconds, then turned back to their boss. "Alice, I will not tolerate this any farther," Monty stated, "I mean, what in the world have you been doing?"

"Working on the blueprints of the project," Alice said plainly, with hints of an obvious secret.

"And," Monty asked.

"...Maybe," Alice fiddled with her fingers, "Another project..."

Monty rose an eyebrow. "And that would be...?"

"It's...it's classified, sir," Alice explained, "Really, it's more like, a couple of projects. One is obvious, of course!"

The goat groaned. "Not that time machine again..."

"It WILL work," Alice yelled, "It worked before and it can work again! I KNOW I can make it work again!"

Monty folded his hands together. "And what exactly would that do to help us in our research," he asked, almost impatiently.

Alice began to stutter a bit. "Well, um, you see," she said, "I'm, uh, not really sure, exactly, but-"

"Then it shouldn't be your main priority," Monty interrupted, "The X-Z Project is much more important. Once we finish, we'll finally reach our goal."

Alice lowered her head. "Yes, sir," she said, "I apologize..."

"Good," Monty nodded, "Now, this second project-"

"-is classified," Alice quickly stated, "With all due respect, sir, the other...project, per say...is much more private."

Monty opened his mouth to say more, but sighed. "Very well," he said, "I can probably figure out what you're talking about anyway...just, don't look too much into it, Alice. It might hurt you more than it has to."

Alice nearly winced at those words. "Yes sir," she said, "Anything else?"

"No. That will be all, Alice."

The woman saluted before heading for the elevator. The goat turned to follow her, still feeling boiled about his partner in general. "Hold on a moment, Agent P," Monty said, "During your next break, I would like to have a word with you in private."

The goat looked to Monty and nodded. "Alright," the goat said, "Will do, sir."

With that the two partners left to the elevator. Alice pressed the button to get to the twenty sixth floor, where the laboratories were. Her animal partner was headed for the floor just above her's, which was where the gym/training facility was located. Their partnership consisted of certain tasks and missions that involved investigations, and rarely had anything to do with fighting some kind of bad guy. That wasn't really needed, since crime hadn't been happening much for years.

Some worried about the sudden low of crime, though those were few, and were obviously thought by the insane. After all, this made Danville, along with the rest of the Tri-State Area, a paradise for the most part. In reality, it wasn't really the lack of crime that worried them. It was what they thought people were planning on the sidelines.

Peace was scattered in the Tri-State Area, and had stayed that way for several decades. Many cherished the moments of tranquility, while others feared for the worst. The people who were in strange, unneeded fear, had a strong belief that something bad was going to happen. Something that would bring an end to them all.

Now, Alice was not one to believe these claims. She herself was one of the many who found calmness in her home-town. She admitted, however, that it was strange that those who spoke about their fear were quickly placed in prison or an asylum, as if they committed a felony of some sort. It was one thing to shoot someone down for speaking out of turn, but arresting someone for it?

It was almost mind boggling. No one was ever put in prison, not that Alice or her partner could remember. Nobody but those who spoke of their fears of what time held for everyone. It was like they knew something, but someone didn't want anyone else to find out, so they muzzled the witnesses. It was probably pure paranoia, but still, from time-to-time it would bother her.

But there were other things that bothered Alice besides what seemed to be a conspiracy...

"That 'secret project' of yours," the goat's tone was serious, "You weren't talking about that birthing serum, were you?"

Alice stayed silent.

"...Al?"

The woman turned to the goat with a stressed look on her face. "YES," she yelled, "I was working on the birth serum! Will you shut up about it?!"

The goat flinched. "Sheesh, calm down, Al."

"Calm down," Alice twitched, "What do you mean by that? I'M PERFECTLY CALM!"

The specific serum that she had been working on was a touchy subject for her. Alice had been working on it for five years now, almost non-stop. She had missed holidays, get-together's, and even vacations in order to possibly finish the project. It worried every one of her friends and family, considering she had shunned the entire world for weeks at a time. It had even, though he refused to admit it, cause some bit of strife for the goat.

"Al," the goat sighed, "It's been a few years since...you know...but, I don't think even science can-"

"Science has allowed us to see the world in a different view," Alice stated like the science-geek she was, "We can deduct the universe from particles, atoms, or something completely mathematical from a logical state of mind," the words of intelligence began to crack at this point, "If we can traverse the dimensional continuum that is outer space, then I most certainly can have a child, thank you very much!"

Ever since her husband left her since they got the news, Alice had been devastated. She had temporarily fallen into depression before being told that there were several women unable to give birth to children, just like her. That somehow gave her the inspiration to make the serum. It wasn't just for her, it was for all the woman suffering with the same ordeal as her. And thus that made it worth while.

And yet, Alice's partner, along with everyone else, kept being skeptical about it. They all said that although medicine had advanced to a high degree over the course of years, it wasn't possible yet, if at all, to cure barren women like herself. Alice herself even had doubts that the serum would succeed, but it was worth it if it meant having...err...if it mean seeing other women...

Alright, maybe this was mostly for her own desires, but she planned on sharing the serum once she made it. She wasn't selfish.

"Science has only gone so far," the goat shook his head, "We may have been able to get to space, but we could do that for _years_. Over a century has gone by since space ships have been crafted. You keep saying that this serum, this, cure, is just as easy as rocket science. Well, if that's true, why hasn't there been a cure for it yet?"

"Because they never tried looking for a cure," Alice argued, "Have you ever heard in history books whether or not they tried to find a cure to being sterile? NO!"

"That's probably because they know that it's close to impossible," the goat said slamming his hoof down a few times as if to get the woman to listen to him, "I'm sure that there have been people who tried to find the cure, but failed and didn't want to be disappointed further. They didn't mention it in history because either they didn't feel that it was necessary to mention, or they didn't want to mention it. This is trying to give life to children, Al! And from barren women, no less."

"Yeah, well, every test can tested at again," Alice said confidently, "Just because someone might have failed before, doesn't mean it can't be tried again...and don't call me Al. I'm not a boy, you dork."

"I just don't want..." the goat muttered something.

"What," Alice eyed her partner.

"I...I don't want you to-"

The doors slid open.

"Oh, look at that, looks like I have to go," the goat quickly said as he stepped off the elevator, "Have fun with the X-Z Project!"

"Hey, wait, what were you-"

The doors closed.

Alice groaned angrily. "That pygmy goat is IMPOSSIBLE," she said.

One floor later, the doors opened again, and she was greeted with several of her co-workers, some of whom teased her about being late again. Just the usual day at work. It was a usual day in general, even. Yep, not one thing fell out of place that day. No surprises.

No surprises at all.

**.**

**.**

**.**

Doofenshmirtz was beginning to have second thoughts right as he stepped through the green swirl. Now that he thought about it, this was not one of his better ideas. It seemed more like a suicide mission than a simple trip through time...simple trip. Yeah. Let's leave it like that.

Sarcastically speaking, of course.

He had thought about it before. How he was the bad guy, and that helping a family member of his nemesis was unlawful to his standards. Doofenshmirtz admitted, he cared for those kids, but why risk his hide for them to begin with? Then again, Perry had saved him several times in the past. Doofenshmirtz only recalled doing something for the platypus once, and that was when he saved him and his two owners from his alternate self.

That was nothing compared to all the horrible things that Perry helped him through. And so, Doofenshmirtz decided that this was just another way to thank Perry for all the times he helped him. And he was more than certain that he was going to die for it.

...Crud.

**.**

**.**

**.**

Many hours later, nightfall came. The X-Z Project wasn't any nearer to being completed as it was the other day, but there had been enough progress made to satisfy the scientists, including Alice. She was walking home, with the annoying goat beside her, with a content look on her face. "I think we'll finish it tomorrow," Alice said.

"Doubt it," the goat rolled his eyes.

"...Jerk," Alice muttered earning an eye roll from the other, "Say, I just realized something. If you and I live together, then why didn't you wake me up when it was time to go to work?"

"You just looked so peaceful," the goat said sarcastically, "It's not like you tried to strangle me last time I even attempted to wake you up for work."

Alice gave a cheesy grin. "He-he, right," she sweated.

The night sky was beautiful that night, as it was every night. Again, there was not one cloud in the sky. Only the stars and the moon hung above everyone and thing. Alice let out a sigh. "I think I'm gonna go for a walk at the meadow," she said.

The goat looked up at Alice. "Fine by me," he shrugged, "Just don't do anything stupid."

"If anyone does anything stupid, it's you, goat-breath," Alice countered.

The secret agent slowly began to grin. "Touche," he said with a nod.

Alice did this from time to time, forcing her partner and roommate to follow her. She did own their house, after all, and she was the only one with the keys to their home. Alice just didn't trust the pygmy goat enough to leave him alone in the house for even a minute. Last time she did that, her house went into a wave of flames, and she and the goat were forced to stay at a motel for several weeks. Who knew pygmy goats were secretly pyromaniacs ready to strike at any moment?

Getting outside of town felt like some kind of release, though Alice didn't feel stressed. It amazed her that the world around the meadow had changed, yet, it had stayed completely the same. She smiled at that, while her partner would snicker at her sentiment. And then, get a kick to the head in return.

"Ow," the goat groaned.

"Shh," Alice hushed even though there was no one there, "Take in the beauty...take it in..."

"You're strange," the goat rolled his eyes and kept walking, "I'm gonna go graze. Be back in a jiff."

"'Kay," Alice said casually as she sat on the grass and lied down.

What felt like a few, peaceful hours was merely thirty minutes as Alice stared up to the sky. The sky itself seemed more beautiful at the meadow. Alice smiled. "Yep," she said, Life doesn't get any better than this..."

A rabbit doing an all-nighter searching for food foraged for morsels in an empty field. A particular blade of grass with a few flowers caught it's eye. It happily bounced over to its meal, opened it's mouth, and-

"Nothing can ruin this...hm?"

-then the blade disintegrated. Strips of emerald flare rose from the ground, scaring the little creature off into its burrow. The woman's eyes widened as she stared for a moment. As the flames grew, she ran for cover behind a hill, letting out a shriek as she did. "GAH!"

"Alice, what going on," her partner called from afar in an annoyed tone.

"Uh, uh," the woman began to fall into panic.

The goat soon came by Alice, noticing the green flames in sheer horror. "Alice," the goat said in a warning tone.

"Uh, uh, uh, don't look at me like that, stupido!"

The goat glared fiercely at Alice. "WHAT DID YOU DO, AND WHY DID YOU DO IT," he roared.

"I dunno, but I'm gonna fix it," Alice yelled in a panicked state, "Just give me a few minutes to think!"

"If you don't fix this soon, I'm gonna blame this whole thing on you when Monty finds out," the goat said.

"SHUT UP! I'm trying to think!"

The random flame rose high into a circle big enough to look much like a doorway as it blasted some grass and dirt away. The portal spanned to about 30 feet, and a large amount of light emanated from it. A faint scream grew louder and louder. It was loud enough to at least grab the attention of the woman and the goat, pulling them away from their arguing. "Did you hear..." Alice trailed off.

Suddenly, two people fell out of the energy-hole, one a man, the other a child.

_Thud!_

"_OOF!_"

The two just lied there for a few minutes, one panting, the other almost completely still. Alice and her partner stared for a moment, ignoring the emerald fire. The man groaned and pushed himself up to his knees. "Ugh...not what I was expecting," he groaned, "Phineas, I think we-"

"LOOK OUT!" Alice and her partner both screamed.

"Huh?"

Doofenshmirtz looked behind him to see the portal made of fire beginning to fall over like a spinning plate or coin. He gasped, grabbed the kid, and ran before the portal fell, the flames dispelled almost immediately but manage to give the ground twenty degree burns in the span of a second and a half. The man stared for a moment, panting heavily while Alice and the goat ran to him, their eyes staring at where the portal once was.

"What...what the..." the goat was speechless.

Alice looked to Doofenshmirtz, who stared at the area around him for a moment before looking down to the boy in his arms. He suddenly began to panic as he went to his knees, set the boy down, and tried to shake him awake. "Phineas? Phineas?!"

The boy didn't move.

"No, no, no, no, no! Not now! Not like this!"

"H-hey, is that kid alright," Alice asked, noticing tears in the other's eyes.

The goat examined the boy, checked for a pulse, and finally placed his ear against the boy's chest for a few seconds before sighing in relief. "He's breathing," he said.

Doofenshmirtz ignored the fact that the goat had just talked, grabbed Phineas, and bolted towards New Danville. "HEY! WAIT!" Alice yelled giving chase, the goat following him, "COME BACK!"

Doofenshmirtz panted, and felt his legs slowly down. He was tired. So very tired. "No...not now...no..."

"HEY! WAIT A MINUTE!"

Doofenshmirtz stopped, his legs feeling like noodles. "Need...to keep...oogh..."

_Thud_

"Oh my gosh!" Alice ran over to Doofenshmirtz, who lied on his side unconscious. "Hey! Hello? Are you okay?!"

The pygmy goat soon came after, examining Doofenshmirtz the same way he examined Phineas. Finally, he looked to the man's shut eyes. "He looks like he hasn't slept in months," he deducted.

"Oh, gee, ya think," Alice asked.

"Well, it could have been something else," the goat said, "He could have suffered from a heart attack! That kid on the other hand..."

The kid named Phineas was next to Doofenshmirtz, out like a light from the start. He looked rather pale, and was barely breathing. More discouragingly, his breaths sounded weak, and hoarse. Alice glared, turning to the goat. "Take the kid to the hospital," she said in an authoritative tone, "Now."

"What? But, what about-"

"PERRY THE PYGMY GOAT, TAKE THE KID TO THE HOSPITAL, NOW!"

The goat gasped a bit. Alice never used his name unless she was being completely and utterly serious. After glancing at Phineas and Doofenshmirtz a few times, he grabbed Phineas and threw him onto his back. "What about you," the goat named Perry asked curiously, "And what about the man?"

"I'll take him," Alice said grabbing Doofenshmirtz's arm, standing up, and slumping his arm around the lobe of her neck, "I can get a taxi, or something and meet you there. Now move! Time is of the essence! That kid could be dead by now!"

Perry nodded and zoomed off. With a lot of struggle, Alice soon followed, dragging Doofenshmirtz with her. "...Phin...Phineas..." Doofenshmirtz murmured blankly, not really conscious despite his words.

"Don't worry," Alice said, "You're son's...gonna be just...ugh! You are heavy..."

**.**

**.**

**.**

Everything was black for a few seconds. Well, a few seconds to Doofenshmirtz, anyway. He heard several voices murmuring, and footsteps. Finally, with little strength, he groaned, loud enough for someone to hear.

_"Hey he's w...are yo...kay?"_

The voice was vague, but it sounded like a woman. Doofenshmirtz began to open his eyes.

_"Hel...lo...Hello..."_

"HEY!"

"AUGH!"

Doofenshmirtz gasped heavily while people around him and the other shushed the one beside her angrily. The woman chuckled. "Sorry," she apologized.

"You idiot," another voice said, "We're in a hospital. Indoor voices, please?"

Someway or another, that brought back horrible memories of Phineas's trip to the hospital...

"Phineas," Doofenshmirtz said, gasping back his energy. He grabbed the woman beside him by the collar of her coat. "Where is he?!"

"Calm down," the woman said, "He's been taken to the emergency room."

Doofenshmirtz panted a bit more, allowing the woman to pry his hands off. "So...he's...he's alive then?"

"For the most part, yes," the woman said, "Yes he is."

Doofenshmirtz looked around the hospital, wondering if he was dreaming or not. No, no, they had made it to the future. Then what happened...oh. Right. He took a nap...and then ended up here.

"Anyways...I'm Alice," the woman greeted before motioning to the seat next to Doofenshmirtz, "And this is my partner, Perry."

_Perry's here?!_

Doofenshmirtz's head turned, but was disappointed to see a goat instead of a platypus. "Oh, I thought you were-"

"-a handsome, suave sailor man? Sorry, dude, you're mistake."

_Thud_

...

"He fainted again," Alice said, staring at the man with an unamused look on her face.

"Strange," Perry blinked, "It's as if he's never heard an animal speak before."

**A/N:**

**Here's the next chapter! :D**

**I am happy that I made this chapter so long. Long chapters make me smile. :)**

**I'm sure you're all wondering about a lot of things...but we all know what those questions are, so why waste our time saying it?**

**I'd like to thank all of those who read the previous chapter (I'm not gonna answer your reviews here, I prefer to do that in PMs):**

_My Dictator Level is Over 9000_

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**I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Have pleasant day, evening, or whatever! :D**


	3. The Artificial Valve

**And so, the story that was once called "Time and Time Again" is now called "As the Clock Ticks". Thank you, Sixletlover11 for the suggestion…as well as the new cover for the story…seriously, guys, she drew it herself! Gaze upon it! GAZE UPON ITS AWESOMENESS! 8DDDDDDDD**

**Dan Povenmire and Swampy Marsh own "Phineas and Ferb"**

**I own only my OCs**

**…Ahem. Now, without a further ado, the next chapter of "As the Clock Ticks"**

**Enjoy! :D**

**P/F/P/F**

**Chapter 2: The Artificial Valve**

**.**

**.**

**.**

Only a day had passed in the present since Doofenshmirtz and Phineas left for the future. Isabella told Buford and Baljeet right when they asked about Phineas's well-being (although it only seemed that Baljeet cared, Buford was obviously just as worried). Neither of them were surprised, and even placed a bet about how someone was going to save Phineas via anything, including time travel. Least to say, Baljeet won, and got a whopping 20 dollars as well as a knuckle sandwich for mocking the bully.

Irving still had no idea about what happened to Phineas. He had been too depressed to do anything, least of all find out what had happened to the red-head. Django, who had been busy helping his father with some art projects, had little to no idea of what was even going on. He had heard about Phineas being in a critical condition, and he worried for his well-being just like everyone else. But he didn't know about the two to three month time limit of Phineas's life.

Of course everyone was worried. News of what happened spread in Danville like wildfire. Both Phineas and Ferb were well-known in the Tri-State Area to be prodigies beyond prodigies, building things that were nearly impossible even for grown-ups. No one ever thought that either of them would have their lives at stake until Phineas was taken to the hospital. The whole "aren't you a little young to have heart problems?" was what everyone was wondering.

"Ferb..."

The green-headed Brit looked to raven-headed girl, the same stoic look that he always wore. It seemed forced, since his brother was on the verge of death, and had been taken to a different time to be saved. Isabella sighed. "Do you think Phineas will be alright?" she asked.

There was a long pause as Ferb fell into thought. After a while, he concluded that his brother had survived many things throughout the course of years. Surely, he would be okay. Ferb then nodded, and said, "I'm sure he'll be fine."

Isabella smiled. Ferb was never wrong, after all. If he said that Phineas would be fine, then he'd have to be.

...Right?

**.**

**.**

**.**

_Beep_

_Beep_

_Beep_

_Beep_

"…Ugh…"

His vision was blurry. The glaring lights shining down at him made it all the more harder for him to see who was around him or what was going on. He could tell that there were four people, two on one side, and two on the other. He could barely make out what they were saying.

"His condition is worsening. I suggest we proceed with surgery immediately."

"Yes. It's the only way to save him now…"

He groaned a bit, his head hurting. _"Mm…where…?"_

"I still can't believe how malformed his heart valves are. I've never seen anything like it."

"Huh…Dr. Lewis, he's waking up."

"Sedate him. We'll need to undergo a perfect surgery if we're going to save him."

A few seconds later there was a jab in his arm. He cringed, though barely, and felt the darkness take over his sight again. The drowsiness came in quickly, and Phineas Flynn blacked out completely once again.

**.**

**.**

**.**

Waiting was the hardest part of the whole ordeal. The uncertainty of whether or not Phineas had died. Dr. Doofenshmirtz knew that he should probably be figuring out he was going to set up the much smaller machine that would help them both get back to the past, but all that he could think about was Phineas. He hadn't paid much thought of the other two who saved him, other than the fact that the goat could talk, which was enough of a surprise to knock him out. He was awake now though, thanks to a good buck in the side via pygmy goat.

"So," the woman beside him, whose name was Alice, broke the silence, "What exactly is wrong with your son...uh?"

"Dr. Heinz Doofenshmirtz." the 'evil' scientist said.

Alice's eyes shifted slightly. "You're a doctor?" she asked.

"My profession is more of mechanical ingenuity that medical work if that's what you're thinking," Doofenshmirtz stated.

"Right," Alice nodded, "How did your son get into this state?"

Doofenshmirtz often questioned why people mistook Phineas to be his son. Yes, the two had many similarities, from the style of their hair, their blue eyes, even the hunch of their backs. He and Phineas even had near to same personalities. To be quite clear, sometimes Doofenshmirtz wondered if Phineas was related to him in some way, but then concluded that it was just mere coincidence that they had such similarities.

"He isn't _my_ son," Doofenshmirtz said, mentally counting how many times he's had to say that over the time he knew the boy, "He's a friend of mine. Now as for what's wrong with him, about two months ago, he was diagnosed with a congenital heart valve defect."

"He has heart problems, then?" Alice asked curiously, "But he's so young!"

"I'm equally surprised," the pygmy goat beside Alice, whose name was Perry much like the nemesis Doofenshmirtz knew too well, said with crossed front legs, "How can someone so young suffer from such a thing?"

"Its genetics, apparently," Dr. Doofenshmirtz explained, "His father-his REAL father-died from a heart attack."

"Poor thing," Alice said sadly.

"Yes," Perry the Pygmy Goat sighed, "It's rare to find such travesties here in New-Danville…" the goat looked to Doofenshmirtz, wrinkling his nose a bit, "Come to think of it I've never seen you around here before…and its odder still of HOW we found you."

Doofenshmirtz froze a bit. Although he was well prepared of how he and Phineas would return to their time, he hadn't really anticipated anyone actually seeing them when they entered the future; in other words, he hadn't thought of a believable alibi. Would time collapse if he said he came from the past, or does that only work if you came from the future? And even if he told them the truth, would they believe him, or get him treated from his "insanity"?

"Well…uh…" Doofenshmirtz chuckled, "You see…we come from a different town far from here, where they couldn't treat him. We came here in hopes of saving him."

That may have only been half-true, but he would have to manage. Maybe if he was lucky, these two would probably be gullible enough to believe him.

"Explain the fiery vortex of doom that you both fell out of, then." Perry demanded skeptically.

Of course, Doofenshmirtz wasn't the luckiest person in the world, so the demand was no surprise.

"…The vortex…?" Doofenshmirtz sweated, "Uh…"

"Knock it off, goat-breath." Alice growled, "You're being really rude."

One out of two would be fine in any other case, but now...

"But aren't you questioning it?" Perry asked turning to his human partner, "What's with the portal? He could have driven here, couldn't he? And why was it burning? We've seen plenty of portals and vortexes of all sorts, and none of them were on fire."

_"He really inquisitive, isn't he?" _Doofenshmirtz thought with the slightest of irritation.

"Furthermore, he fainted after I spoke as if he's never heard an animal speak before." Perry rambled on, "Which he hadn't! You had to explain it to him! Isn't it supposed to be normal for animals to have human speech?

"And that portal...you saw it collapse. No portals collapse like that! It's almost as if the portal itself wasn't advanced to our timeline."

_"And now he's mentioning timelines." _Doofenshmirtz stated mentally, _"Not a good sign..."_

"What do timelines have to do with anything?" Alice asked, nearly tilting her head like a curious child.

"...Nothing." Perry sighed, "Nothing at all."

_"Hm...? Wait. Is he hiding something?"_

"No. You are, mister, and I want answers."

Doofenshmirtz was taken aback. First he learns that animals can talk in the future (something about microchips, animal schools, videotapes, a lot of things that proved to be able to teach animals the skill of human speech). Now this pygmy goat can apparently read his thoughts. Doofenshmirtz was about to ask if he was talking out loud, when Perry the Pygmy Goat interrupted him.

"The T-S.U.U. placed another chip in their animal agents brains, allowing them to read thoughts of others." Perry explained nonchalantly, "We did this in order to read the minds of those planning on getting out of line. We're sort of like a secret service kind of thing."

"I still think that lacks freedom of speech." Alice said with crossed arms.

"It's in the mind, not out of the mouth." Perry stated, "We have freedom of speech, but that doesn't include thoughts."

"That doesn't make it any better!"

"Shh..." several nurses hushed Alice, who shrunk down a bit.

"Sorry," Alice apologized softly.

"How is Phineas, anyway?" Doofenshmirtz asked, changing the subject.

"Oh, well," Perry said, "The doctors told me that the kid was in a critical condition, but they've managed to stabilize him. They're probably undergoing surgery as we speak."

Doofenshmirtz sighed; whether it was out of relief or to let out stress, Alice and Perry weren't sure. Alice looked to Perry again, and said, "Did they say anything else, any news?"

"Nope." Perry answered, "They haven't come back with any news."

"No news means good news," Doofenshmirtz chanted as Alice and Perry (the Pygmy Goat) went on with their conversation, "No news means good news..."

Things were going well...so far...at least. Doofenshmirtz simply kept saying those words that were almost meaningless to him at this point. This whole trip wasn't for nothing, was it? It couldn't have been, right? Phineas was going to be fine...he was going to be fine.

"No news means good news...no news means good news..."

"Heinz?" Alice shook Doofenshmirtz out of his thoughts, "The doctor wants to talk to you."

Doofenshmirtz's head shot up to see a man wearing a white coat similar to his own, only it fit more to be a doctor's. The man looked like he could be the twin brother of Dr. Anderson, only this guy had black hair while Dr. Anderson's was brown. Other than that, the resemblance was impeccable.

"Heinz Doofenshmirtz, I presume?" the doctor asked, "I'm Dr. Ivan. It's a pleasure meeting you."

Doofenshmirtz and Dr. Ivan shook hands. "How is Phineas?" was the first thing that Doofenshmirtz said to the doctor.

Dr. Ivan looked serious, but calm. Probably because he had done this several times before, no doubt. "I think it's better if I showed you." Dr. Ivan turned to walk away, "Come with me."

Doofenshmirtz followed immediately. Alice and Perry glanced to each other, wondering whether or not they should follow, but decided to stay put. They didn't really have the right to butt into this anymore than they already did. Even if Perry was a little suspicious of Doofenshmirtz.

"Whatever that guy's hiding, I'm gonna find out." Perry said with a cross of front-legs.

Alice merely rolled her eyes. "Oh, Perry..."

**.**

**.**

**.**

Doofenshmirtz and Ivan entered one of the hospital rooms. In the middle of the room lied Phineas on a bed: on his side and completely limp. A tube ran some machine down his throat, and his tongue was hanging on the side. Phineas was now audibly breathing, but barely, and he was far from conscious at the moment.

Doofenshmirtz walked to the boy's side. "Oh, Phineas..."

"In his condition, I highly doubt he'll survive another forty eight hours." Dr. Ivan stated with a shake of his head.

Doofenshmirtz looked over to Dr. Ivan. "You can help him, right?" Doofenshmirtz asked, "This whole trip wasn't for nothing, right?"

"We need to replace his aortic heart valve as soon as possible." Dr. Ivan explained walking to a table and grabbing something, "We'll remove the defective valve and place one of these in its place."

The doctor held up a small circular valve for Doofenshmirtz to see. It was small enough to fit in someone's nose if one tried hard enough. The flaps within were very finely crafted, and looked fairly similar to an actual heart valve. "This is going into his heart?" Doofenshmirtz asked.

"That one is just a model, but yes." Dr. Ivan explained, "Alternatively, we could place one made of spare tissue inside, but they need replacing every decade or so, and Phineas is much too young to have to put up with those surgeries for her whole life. Personally, I strongly recommend the mechanical valve."

Doofenshmirtz kept his eyes on the artificial valve. "Yes, yes, I can't really see Phineas coming back here every ten years, anyway."

"There is one problem." Dr. Ivan said, "Since Phineas is a minor, I'm legally required to obtain parental consent to perform this operation. You said you were just a friend of his?"

Doofenshmirtz felt sick. Alice must have told him that they weren't related while he was spaced out in thought. "Oh no. I... I can't go back for that. Not in forty-eight hours. It'll take too long!"

"I'm sorry, but, I can't go against the law," Dr. Ivan said.

Doofenshmirtz grabbed Dr. Ivan by his coat, looking at him pleadingly. "I don't have the time to do it!" he exclaimed, nearing to panic, "Please, you have to save him! There has to be something I can do! Anything!"

The doctor scratched his chin. "There's no record of either of you in our files, so I think... yes, well, the receptionists do tend to make errors from time to time." he nodded as the man. "We'll get your son prepped for his operation right away."

Tears ran down Doofenshmirtz's face as he found himself pulling Dr. Ivan into a death-hug. "Thank you! Thank you so much!"

"I'm just doing my job." Dr. Ivan smiled as he politely pried Doofenshmirtz off of him. "Let's get you back in the waiting room so we can start on Phineas. I have some reading material concerning what to expect out of the heart surgery, too."

Dr. Ivan reached into his coat and took out several pamphlets. He handed them to Doofenshmirtz, who took them with a nod. "Of course, yes. I'll get to reading these right away."

Doofenshmirtz made his way back to the waiting room, where Alice and Perry remained. Both Alice and Perry thought about leaving, but decided to stick around and see what would happen. Plus, it seemed wrong to leave people who were in trouble after they helped them, although it was obvious who was more concerned over the two rather than curious of where they came from and why they were here. For all Perry was concerned, Doofenshmirtz and Phineas could be aliens.

"How's Phineas?" Alice asked.

"He's doing fine," Doofenshmirtz said rather calmly as to hide his reaction from before, "Who knew that people mistaking me to being Phineas's father would come in handy one day?"

Alice blinked. "So they think you're his father now?" she asked with a slight chuckle, "I wonder how this is gonna turn out..."

"I still want answers from you, Heinz," Perry stated.

Doofenshmirtz nodded, not really paying attention to anything that the goat said as he opened the first pamphlet. Perry tried grabbing his attention some more, but groaned and decided to let it slide this one time. Alice peered over Doofenshmirtz's shoulder to see what he was reading, but after a while got a bit bored. She had already read about artificial heart valves in science books anyway. She knew how they worked.

That night, Doofenshmirtz spent most of the time setting up the much smaller apparatus. The machine was contained in a small box that could fit into someone's pocket. It was black with a red button on top, meant to be pressed if it were to be opened. When opened and set up, it looked much like a tripod with a large camera on top, sparking bits of the same green energy that created the first portal.

It was a lot weaker than the original time machine, but it was only meant for a one time use so that didn't really matter to Doofenshmirtz. As long as it was enough power for them to return to the present, Doofenshmirtz was fine with it. He spent the rest of the night testing the small apparatus, having spent every ounce of energy running it. He spent even more in panic of Phineas's well-being, though Alice visited the next day as well just to see if Phineas was alright.

Doofenshmirtz was, if not momentarily, relieved that everything was going to be alright. After Alice left, saying something about being late for work if she left any later but would be back later in the evening to see how everything was going, Doofenshmirtz took a seat on a chair, closed his eyes, and fell asleep.

**A/N:**

**Cliffhanger! :D**

**Will Phineas be okay? That ain't any of your business! XD**

**Yes, this seems a bit shorter than the last chapters, but that's not really a big problem, right?**

**You know what I love about Dr. D? You can do pretty much anything with him and he won't be OOC. At least that's my way of thinking about him. :3**

**Thanks for those who read and reviewed so far:**

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**I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! There's more to come soon! :D**


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